'Reactionary' Ringtones Spark Arrests In Tibet

Police in Tibet have swept markets in recent months looking for banned music. Chinese state media report that police have arrested several suspects for allegedly downloading to their cell phones music that the government considers "reactionary." npr reports.

Woeser, who goes by only one name like many Tibetans, is one of Tibet's most outspoken authors. Recently, the Beijing-based writer has been blogging about the hidden world of reactionary ringtones, subversive songs and dissident downloads.

... But even before digitized music and cell phones arrived in the Himalayan highlands, there was already a tradition of protest music.

Ringtone Recorder app

Ringtone Recorder is a new iPhone app that lets you record anything and make your own iPhone ringtones.

Using the built-in iPhone microphone you can record up to 30 seconds of audio of anything.

You can also set a unique ringtone for each person in your iPhone phonebook.

How to:

1. Record your ringtone
2. Select Download It and specify your email address
3. Go to your computer and check your email. You will receive an email with an m4r attachment
4. Save the m4r attachment to your computer
5. On your computer, open iTunes and select File > Add to Library. Select the m4r file that you saved in step 4
6. Synch your iPhone with iTunes and the ringtone will transfer to your iPhone.

Sony and mSpot Sign Ringtone Deal

Sony Music Entertainment and mSpot have entered into a ringtone distribution agreement that will add Sony's catalog of artists to mSpot's collection of over 400,000 song titles. AppScout reports.

mSpot's customers can find the new Sony tracks through the Make-UR-Tones mobile application available on AT&T, Sprint and Verizon cell phones. The app lets listeners select full-track songs and edit them to create short, customized ringtones, and will soon work for Sony artists like Leona Lewis, Alicia Keys, Justin Timberlake, and Britney Spears.

mSpot now offers ringtones form all four major labels, including EMI, Warner Music, and Universal, along with indies Ingrooves and IRIS. Companies like mSpot, Myxer, and Jamster offer ringtones separately as well as through various agreements with the major carriers.

Mobile music will thrive despite ringtone dropoff

Ringtones, typically mobile music’s saving grace, took a hit in 2008, but not enough to effect mobile music’s overall growth.

Global revenue from mobile music services will reach nearly $14.6 billion by 2013, according to a Juniper Research report, and a sharp fall in ringtone revenue will be more than offset by growth in full-track downloads, streamed music services and ringback tones.

[via Telephony Online]

Kirkuk Ringtones Reflect Rivalries

In Kirkuk, Irak, ringtones identify ethnic and religious affiliations in a bitterly contested city. From the Institute for war & peace reporting.

In Iraq’s most diverse and disputed province, mobile phone ringtones play a big part in the politics of identity. Kirkuk contains most of Iraq’s many religious and ethnic groups, and has been described as everything from a colourful bouquet of flowers to a powderkeg.

Related:

-- In Iraq, having the wrong ringtone can get you killed

-- Baghdad Brigade Sunni militia look for mobile phones with “unIslamic” ringtones

Major Label Acts Get Hip to Music Apps

Apple's app store is doing for music promotion what the company already did for music sales: making it portable, desirable and easy to access. [via Blogs Wired]

Forget about ringtones and Rhapsody; these apps let you subscribe to artists. Unlike the Presidents of the United States of America app launched last week, Kyte's iPhone apps for Universal Music Group artists don't give you full tracks, but they do keep fans updated with new information through exclusive videos -- mostly filmed on cellphone, of course -- a chat room, and a Twitter-style news feed.

Kyte Launches Turn-Key iPhone App Platform

Kyte has just launched its iPhone Apps Framework - a turn-key solution that allows Kyte partners to create applications that can include video, live chat, and monetization options with a minimal amount of development costs. The Washington Post/Tech Crunch reports.

Alongside the launch of the new platform, Kyte is announcing five artists from IGA records who have already released their iPhone applications, including the following free apps [all iTunes links]: The All American Rejects, Keri Hilson, Lady Gaga, The Pussycat Dolls, and Soulja Boy Tell 'Em.

Besides Twitter feeds, RSS, and chat, Kyte also offers a listing of each artist's most recent videos taken using Kyte.tv's mobile phone video apps. And, perhaps most importantly for the artists, each app features a list of links to songs in the music section of Apple's iTunes store.

Press release

Record Exec Says Music’s Future Is in the Clouds

In a speech to college musicians, Mr. McBride said smart-phone apps “will radically change the business.” From the WSJ.

Upcoming smart phones from companies like Research In Motion, maker of the BlackBerry, are likely to create new business models, he said. He was speaking in Boston in a lecture series on music management at Berklee College of Music, a 4,000-student college.

Mr. McBride is CEO of Vancouver-based Nettwerk Music Group, which manages Avril Lavigne, Barenaked Ladies and Sarah MacLachlan, among other artists. He said he anticipates that many music lovers will start to access smart-phone apps like Slacker.com’s subscription-radio service.

If they can create their own playlist, he says, they are likely to stop buying downloads, since they know they will always be able to retrieve music they want to hear from the cloud, the computer industry term for content and applications stored remotely and accessed over the Internet. “There’s no need to own product,” he said.

Google Agrees To Disclose Hidden Costs Of 'Free' Ringtones

The Florida Attorney General's office has convinced Google to require search marketers to disclose hidden costs associated with supposedly free ringtones. Mediapost reports.

Now, a search for "free ringtones" on Google returns sponsored listings with headlines like "complimentary ringtones," but with copy that includes phrases like "ad-supported or $9.99/month."

The deal was forged after six months of talks between the Florida authorities and Google, said Will Haselden, head of the cyberfraud division of the Florida Attorney General's economic fraud unit. "We figured you could represent $9.99 a month in seven or eight characters," he said. "We convinced Google that advertising wouldn't be markedly affected by putting that in there."

Read full article.

How the Pandora iPhone App Redefined Net Radio

[via FORA.tv]

The Breast Englargement Ringtone in the News again

boingboing has dug up an all time Ringtone favorite. The breast enlargement ringtone. Scientifically explained on the Discovery Channel via YouTube by Dr Tomobechi.

Such a ringtone made headlines in September 2004 - when a member of the Aum Shinrikyo cult in Japan (that unleashed deadly sarin gas on the Tokyo subway system nearly 14 years ago) started selling a ringtone that should make your breasts grow larger just by listening to it.

Tax on iTunes Downloads in Wis. Gov's Budget Plan

Wisconsin Governor Jim Doyle has proposed a five percent sales tax on iTunes and other digital downloads as an option to cut into the state's budget shortfall. Fox9.com reports.

Doyle wants to impose the sales tax on downloads starting October 1st.

The tax would apply to more than music, with movies, ringtones, electronic books and greeting cards all eligible for the download sales tax.

Doyle says it would generate $11 million over two years.

Could a $3 iPhone App Change the Way Music is Delivered?

Apple has approved an iPhone application from the Nineties alternative rock group The Presidents of the United States of America. The PUSA app sells for $2.99, and lets you stream the band's entire catalog of music, which includes hits like "Peaches" and "Lump," over a Wi-Fi or cellular connection. PC World reports.

Fans who buy the app also get access to premium content like the band's original 10-song demo tape Froggystyle; a link to buy PUSA songs on the iTunes store; outtakes and live recordings that will be updated regularly; and links to the PUSA blog.

... Dave Dederer, PUSA's lead singer, said the PUSA app is a trial run for a much bigger business model that would allow bands to preview albums directly with fans and then give them the opportunity to pre-purchase the album at the iTunes store.

Since the music is streamed, labels don't have to worry about the album ending up on a file-sharing site, and with a link to the iTunes Store the app might actually encourage people to buy the music.

Read full article.

Previously: - The Presidents of the USA introduces iPhone app

Nokia Comes With Music Now Comes With INgrooves

INgrooves, a leading provider of digital distribution, marketing and promotional services to the independent music community, announced today that it has joined the Nokia Comes With Music service, a revolutionary way for music lovers to discover and enjoy music.

Those who purchase a Nokia Comes With Music device will gain access to Ingrooves' extensive catalog of independent music. Consumers will be able to download tracks to both their mobile device and computer through the Nokia Music Store during the first twelve months that they own their Nokia device. Once the year is over, consumers can keep the music they've downloaded.

[via FierceMobile Content release]

The Presidents of the USA introduces iPhone app

The Seattle rock band Presidents of the United States of America just released their very own iPhone application, PUSA.

The $2.99 app offers full-tracks from four albums as well as the "lost recordings" from the band's 10-song demo album FroggyStyle. Will we see more bands following suit with iPhone apps? You can count on it.

[via TechFlash]

Samsung Launches two Beat Phones For DJs who Can’t Afford Turbtables

Samsung’s has two new additions to their Beat lineup for the musically-inclined: the DJ M7600 and Disc M6710. IntoMobile reports.

The Beat DJ features a remixing application that lets you bust out some impromptu scratch routines, including lowpass, highpass, reverb, tempo, and lots of other changes to bring out your inner tunesmith. As spotted before the show, the DJ hosts some proper Bang and Olufsen speakers to share your sheer pimptitude with passersby.

The Disc version’s only difference seems to be subbing out GPS for a slide-out keypad, and skipping the advanced DJ software. A very cool idea, overall. Video to come!

Shazam adds 15 million new users in six months

Mobile music discovery provider Shazam announced it has added 15 million new users in the last six months alone.

According to Shazam, its userbase grew from 20 million worldwide in September 2008 to a current total of 35 million--in addition, users are now tagging more than a million tracks each day.

A significant chunk of Shazam's growth is tied to its success on Apple's iPhone--in late September, the firm said more than 1.5 million users downloaded the application in the six weeks following its debut on Apple's App Store.

The Shazam service is now deployed across 75 carriers in 60 countries, including AT&T, T-Mobile and Vodafone. The application enables users to identify music from any audio source by holding their mobiles to the song for a few seconds--after pinpointing the track in question, Shazam offers premium downloads via the operator's dedicated music store.

[FierceMobile Content press release]

How to make iPhone ringtones with iTunes for free

ITWorld's step-by-step on how to make iPhone ringtones with iTunes for free.

Valentones

Singtone lets users record their own Romantic (or other) pop song clip on line via their computer, Karaoke-like, and when it's played back, it's been much improved – so you sound great. It's wonderful.

Some ringtones stats

According to a 2008 study by Ipsos MediaCT, a marketing research company, approximately one-third of mobile phone users download ringtones, and about 40 percent of users change their ringtones frequently.
CNN reports.

Ipsos research shows that ringtones are the most common type of mobile music content downloaded by users, compared to full-length songs and ringback tones, tones that replace the typical ringing signal heard by the caller.

... Customizing a phone with multiple ringtones can be expensive. Depending on the wireless carrier or the service plan, ringtones cost anywhere from $0.99 to $2.99. That may not deter cell phone users. Analysts at Screen Digest, a UK-based firm covering global media markets, predicted that mobile music sales will double from $1.6 billion in 2008 to $3.2 billion in 2012.

Record labels eye mobile music games

Seeking newer, cheaper promotional channels, the music industry turns to titles like Tap Tap Revenge. The Christian Science Monitor reports via Fierce Mobile Content.

Three neon bars, a cascade of fast-moving dots, and a bumptious pop soundtrack, piped through an undersized speaker or a pair of headphones. That’s the spare formula behind Tap Tap Revenge, a video game for the iPhone and iPod touch, which has become in recent months one of the most popular applications ever distributed through Apple’s online iTunes store.

According to figures provided to the Monitor by Tapulous, the Palo Alto, Calif.-based creator of Tap Tap Revenge, the game has been downloaded by more than 6 million unique users. (Approximately 100,000 “paid” versions of “Tap Tap Revenge” have been sold, the company says.)

But more important, say many analysts, music games such as Tap Tap Revenge are a bow-tied, brightly colored gift to the ailing record industry, which has struggled in recent years to adapt to the realities of the digital landscape. Even as CD sales slump – the 2008 holiday season was the worst in recent memory – users have flocked to cheap or free downloadable mobile content.

For the savvy label executives, it’s a no-brainer: the relatively low cost of licensing music for a mobile platform is offset by the promise of tremendous media exposure.

Read full article.

'10 Songs That Rocked The Digital Music World'

Which artist was the first to sell a million ringtones? Who had the most-downloaded song last year? And what obscure bands have risen to fame thanks to the popularity of the Guitar Hero video game series?

You can find the answers to those questions and others in Paid Content Next's "10 Songs That Rocked the Digital Music World," which details the rise of digital music through actual tunes. With the emergence of the iPod, YouTube and the "mashup," music is being created, marketed and consumed in new ways. Our list, the result of extensive research, singles out artists like T.I., Danger Mouse and Jet, who have played a significant role in those chapters, and tells the backstory behind these key songs.

[via Paid Content]

Copyright Dispute Continues Over Mobile Phone Music Files

Copyright agencies have again suffered a setback in efforts to secure greater royalties from music files copied to mobile phones. YLE News Finland reports.

The government decided at the turn of the year that no separate royalties would be levied this year on the copying of films and music for private use. At present, compensation takes the form of an additional fee added to the price of blank CD and DVD discs, digital set-top boxes and mp3 players.

Read full a rticle.